Foster’s view of disability

Saturday

Jan 5, 2013 at 12:18 PMJan 5, 2013 at 12:20 PM

Carol Winters

Blake Foster, son of Andy and Melissa Foster of Odell, has low vision and lives with the knowledge that the little sight he has can be taken away at any time.Blake suffers from progressive cone-rod dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder that affects the cone and rod cells of the retina. He cannot see clearly, has difficulty with colors, and has a light sensitivity that produces eye fatigue said his mother, Melissa Foster. In addition, he has amblyopia (lazy eye).Growing up with low vision has been complicated for the 15-year-old sophomore at Pontiac Township High School. His life has been filled with frustrations and fears, but through it all, all he wants is to be known as a regular kid, he said. His mother echoes this sentiment. “His disability does not define him,” she added. “People need to know he is not different than any other kid.”His mother has been dealing with Blake’s low vision disability since he was 18 months old. “He would stand right on top of the television in order to see it or bring his toys right up to his eyes. We took him to an eye doctor in Kankakee and that man spent five minutes with him and said he was severely farsighted. We decided to get a second opinion and took him to Bloomington to another eye doctor and that doctor said Blake was severely farsighted and took the time to explain to us how Blake saw things. He also connected us with an ophthalmologist in Peoria. At the time, we did not have an explanation for his low vision.“No one in our family is farsighted. I am nearsighted and wear glasses, but my sight is nothing like what Blake has to deal with. It is a genetic disability,” she said.“It wasn’t until he was in eighth grade and woke up one morning and said he could not see did we finally start our journey and found out what was really wrong with him. We saw a new doctor, who had taken over the practice of our former eye doctor. We then saw another doctor in Peoria and he ordered all of the necessary tests to determine what was wrong,” Melissa Foster said.Blake added, “There is no cure for cone rod dystrophy. I could lose what sight I do have completely at any time. My sight can come and go or it can be gone permanently.”Blake said he does not think about the possibility of going blind and has not learned Braille. His mother said, “It is difficult for a sighted person to learn Braille and would not serve to help Blake in the future. Sighted people learn Braille differently than people who are blind.”In an effort to learn more about how low vision affected Blake, his mother went to Illinois State University to become a low vision teacher. However, she had six children at home; student teaching for 12 weeks in Jacksonville, posed a problem. She got a special education degree instead.”Presently, she works as a pre-school assistant at Odell Grade School.She worries about Blake’s safety. “I worried about him learning to ride a bike and then learning how to skateboard. You have to let him do the things other kids would do. I worried him about him trying out welding during Freshman Open House at the high school, but he did alright with that. Right now, I worry about him getting a driver’s license or living in a big city that would have a lot of public transportation. We are pretty sheltered here in Odell.”“For Blake to get a driver’s license, he would have to attend the Marionjoy Rehabilitation Hospital and be assessed to see if he could ever drive or even drive with daytime restrictions. Then, if was allowed, he would have to take lessons from them and they are in Wheaton, IL. Blake is very mature for his age, but I would like him to be older. I worry about if he had accident, if other people would think his vision would be to blame. We will have to wait and see. Driving is a lot of responsibility.”“Non-restrictive eyesight is 20/40---Blake has 20/60 in one eye and 20/80 in the other eye,” she added.It has not been an easy time for Melissa or for Blake. Blake has text books that are 4 times as large as his peers’ textbooks. All tests, worksheets and handouts must be enlarged by 52%. He has tried special glasses, contacts, vision therapy, and eye appointment every two months.Blake’s school schedule has to accommodate eye fatigue---all of his core classes are in the morning, but he cannot tolerate classes that require extensive reading to be back-to-back.However, the biggest frustration for him is being considered different at school. He belongs to Key Club, FFA, Student Council, and Peers In Action---all service groups, yet he feels he is not voted in to fill officer positions. “I usually get one vote---from my friend.”Blake feels his disability sometimes gets in the way of people’s perceptions. “No one votes for the blind kid,” he said.He wants people to know that being treated differently only adds to his frustrations. “I don’t like it, but I don’t say anything because I don’t want to cause a problem. I want people to know that if they don’t like something about me, just don’t say anything---or be nice about it---or just help me out.”Although, being treated differently has been a problem for Blake and his family, Blake tries not to let it get to him. He enjoys serving others and Melissa said, “We have tried to teach our children to serve their community.”Blake has had many positive people helping him through the ups and downs.Blake enjoys attending the Lions Camp for the visually impaired. The camp is for ages 7-18. He has attended Camp Lions for several years. “I enjoy meeting the counselors. They are right there if you need help with something.”Melissa also participates in the camp by having the Odell Lions Club provide snacks.The Lions of Illinois have provided him low vision care since he was in preschool. Through the low vision clinics in Bloomington, Blake, has had the opportunity to be seen by some of the best low vision doctors in Illinois. The low vision clinic also provides glasses and other optical devices free of charge to those attending. He has also been able to attend Camp Lions due to the Lions of Illinois. “We are really grateful for their help,” said Melissa. When you see the Lions or Lioness members on the street selling candy buy some; know that when you do, it goes to help a person right here in your community!”In addition, Blake is grateful for Jan Harrell of the Heart of Illinois Low Incidence Association, who attends his 504 plan meetings and has taught Blake to self advocate.She has been a great source of information for the schools. For example, she can talk about safety concerns in PE, what sports he can play and what sports he cannot play like table tennis---he cannot see the ball,” Melissa said.Blake added, “My parents have really helped me out a lot---I can come home to them and they let me vent.”In addition, Blake appreciates the guidance of Pastor Jeff Williams. “He is always someone I can talk to.”Blake loves video games and cooking, even though his eyesight is an issue for him.“Blake is just like any other kid. We don’t treat him any differently. He has never known perfect eyesight, so this is just his life.”Blake has five siblings: Trevor-17, Seth-13, Katie-11, Elizabeth-9, and Cory-7.